Parents, carers and campaigners in Ealing have launched a crowdfunding campaign for a legal challenge against Labour-run Ealing Council’s decision to close 10 of the borough’s 25 children’s centres.
The campaign is aiming to raise £5,000 to fund initial legal advice from solicitors and a barrister.
According to the campaign group Save Ealing’s Children’s Centres, a legal team will investigate and consider all aspects of Ealing Council’s decision-making and consultation processes. They will advise on the merits of a legal challenge and prepare pre-action correspondence to the local authority. The advice will be sought on behalf of individual families directly affected by the closures.
Ealing Council approved the proposals last month (11 June 2025), prompting widespread concern among parents, carers and early years practitioners. While three centres – Jubilee, Petts Hill and Dormers Wells – were retained after public opposition, campaigners argue that the overall plan remains harmful to community provision and support.
Save Ealing’s Children’s Centres has been vocal in its criticism of the consultation process, citing a lack of transparency and proper engagement with those set to be impacted. They claim that many families were unaware of the proposals or unable to participate in the consultation due to language barriers, limited access to technology and other challenges that prevented them from engaging in the process
On its crowdfunding page, the campaign group said: “There is a strong case to be made that the council has acted improperly through the process leading up to the decision. We have exhausted the few democratic routes available to try to pressure the council to do the right thing – and we continue to protest and lobby councillors.”
An Ealing Council spokesperson previously told EALING.NEWS: “Children’s centres provide vital services for families and are cornerstones of the community, but the current set up is not working. We have 25 centres, but despite increased demand for statutory children’s services, not all families who could benefit are using them.
“Supporting our most vulnerable residents is a top priority for us, and our aim with the children’s centres is to design a service more tailored to our families’ needs and move services into the community to better reach those who may need our help, while retaining the largest number of children’s centres in London.
“The goal is to reach more families, earlier, with better support, and while some centres will no longer operate in their current form, the services themselves are being enhanced, with all seven towns seeing an increase in children’s centre activity following the changes.
“We’ve worked closely with the community throughout this process, engaged with over 2,000 residents, and have adapted plans based on what we’ve heard. We remain open to ongoing dialogue with all community stakeholders.”
